UNITED NATIONS: An estimated 80, 000 children are at high risk of cholera as the rainy season begins across West and Central Africa, a UN spokesperson said.
Active outbreaks in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Nigeria raise the threat of cross-border transmission to neighbouring countries, said Farhan Haq, deputy spokesperson for the UN secretary-general, at a daily briefing on Wednesday.
Chad, the Republic of Congo, Ghana, Cote d'Ivoire and Togo are also grappling with ongoing epidemics, Haq cited UNICEF. Niger, Liberia, Benin, the Central African Republic and Cameroon remain under surveillance due to vulnerability, he added.
Since the start of the outbreaks, UNICEF has been delivering health, water, hygiene and sanitation supplies to treatment facilities and communities, said the spokesperson.
Besides supporting cholera vaccination in the affected areas and encouraging families to seek treatment and improve hygiene practices, urgent and scaled-up efforts are needed to prevent further spread and contain the disease across the region, Xinhua news agency reported.
To augment the emergency response across the region over the next three months, UNICEF West and Central Africa urgently requires $20 million to provide support in health, water and sanitation, risk communication and community engagement, Haq said.
According to the World Health Organization, Cholera is an acute diarrhoeal infection caused by consuming food or water contaminated with the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. It is a global public health threat and indicates inequity and a lack of social and economic development. Access to safe water, basic sanitation and hygiene is essential to prevent cholera and other waterborne diseases.